Door opening mechanism



Oct. 20, 1936. K H R 2,057,912

' DOOR OPENING MECHANISM Fi led Oct. 16, 1934 3 SheetsSheet 1 Oct. 20,1936.

Filed 001;. 16, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 a o J r? f I6 24 6'3 2 InventorOct. 20, 1936. J QHARA 2,057,912

DOOR OPENING MEGHANI SM Filed Oct. 16, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 5/ I Fi i.54

I n'uento'r Patented Oct. 20, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

My invention relates generally to door opening and closing mechanism,and particularly to mechanism of this type especially suited tooperation of garage and other similar doors by the simple expedient ofrunning a vehicle or other suitable weight onto and from a memberlocated in the pavement or floor, and an important object of myinvention is to provide a simplified and relatively inexpensivemechanism of the character indicated.

Another important object of my invention is to provide a door openingand closing mechanism of the character indicated which does not requirethe presence therein of timing devices.

It is also an important object of my invention to provide a mechanism ofthe character indicated above which is controlled and partly operated bycompressed air or other suitable air under pressure.

Other objects and advantages of my inventionv will be apparent from areading of the following description in connection with the drawings,wherein for purposes of illustration I have shown a preferred embodimentof my invention.

: In the drawings:--

Figure 1 is an elevational view of the outside of a garage or the likeshowing the outside of the mechanism controlled door, with parts of themechanism in sight.

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional View taken through Figure 1 takenapproximately on the line 2--2 and looking downwardly in the directionof the arrows.

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical sectional View taken through Figure 1approximately on the line 33 and looking toward the left in thedirection of the arrows.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view through front of the garageand the numeral 9 to the floor of the garage, the pavement and the fioorhaving in common a pit ID in which works the depressible platform IIwhich is located at pavement and floor level, and which operates in amanner to control the opening and 'closingof the door I.

The door 1 comprises in reality a pair of doors- The outer edge of thedoor I2 is 55 I2 and I3.

hinged as indicated at I4 and I5 to the side of the door openingfi,while the door l3 has its outer edge hinged as indicated at l6 and I! tothe opposite side ofthe door opening 6 in such a way that the inneredges of the doors I2 and I3 meet. 5 Each of the doors l2 and I3 iscomposed of a pair of sections l8, l9 and 20, 2|, respectively. Whilethe hinges l4 and I5 and I6 and I! are attached to the outer side of thedoor frame and to the outer side of'the door l2 and I3, the 10 hinges22, 23 and 24, 25 connecting the adjacent edges of the sections l8, l9,and 20, 2| are attached to the inner side. of the sections.

All of the hinges mentioned are of the spring type with the springsarranged to swing the door 15 sections relative to each other and thedoors relative to the door frame,v and the springs are so tensioned thatwhen free to do so, the door sections will be swung toward the closedposition, and compressed air operated means about to be described isutilized to overcome tension of these spring hinges for opening thedoors.

Fixed to the section l8 of the door l2 and to the section 2| of the door13 at the top thereof is a pivot bracket 26, 21, respectively, on whichis 25 pivotally connected the end of the corresponding connecting rod28, 28' of the respective compressed air cylinders 29, 29 which areidentical inconstruction but oppositely arranged on a level with theupper end of the brackets 26, 2'! and in 30 positions on the front wallof the garage outwardly of the sides of the door opening as clearlyshown in Figures 1 and 2.

Each of the cylinders 29, 29 consists of a closed end cylinder having onthe closed end the spaced 35 lugs 30 having the registering pivot holes3| to pass the pivot 32 which passes also through an appropriate bracket33, 33', respectively, projecting from the front of the front wall ofthe garage as indicated. The opposite end of the cylinder is closed by athreaded head 34 containing a piston rod packing 35 of suitable type anda nipple 3B which has a passage 31 communicating with the interior ofthe cylinder 29' at one side of the piston 38 with which the connectingrod 28' is connected as shown in Figure 4. It is obvious that thepivotal mounting of the cylinders 29 and 29' permits them to swing asrequired by the opening and closing of the doors.

A compressed air conduit 39, 39', respectively, leads from each of thenipples 36 along the wall of the garage and into the pavement and hasailateral branch 40, 40' entering opposite sides ofa coupling connectedto the air control valve 1' the piston across the opening 50.

42 which is located on the floor of the pit l5 and in a centralizedposition therein.

The controlvalve 42 comprises a casing 43 containing a working piston 44having the piston rod 45 projecting through a removable top 46 closingthe upper end of the casing and having therein an air outlet 41. Theupper end of the piston rod 45 contains a ball 48 which is swivellysocketed by the socket arrangement 49 attached to the lower side of thedepressible platform II as shown in Figure 5, in such a way that thepiston 44 will follow the rise and fall of the platform ll.

As shown in Figure 5 the T-coupling conduit 40 communicates with theinterior-ofthe casing 43 through an opening 50 and the casing hasanother opening 5| somewhat below the opening 50. It is also shown thatthe compressed air supply conduit 66 communicates with the interior ofthe casing 43 by means of a hole 52 in the opposite side of the casing.The piston 44 has a transverse passage 53 which connects the holes and52 when the piston is in a depressed position. The piston also has inone side an L- shaped opening 54 which registers with the opening 50when the piston 44 is in an elevated position so that communicationbetween the compressed air conduit 40 and the interior of the casing 43is maintained despite the position of There are preferably four heavycoiled springs 55 in each of two longitudinally arranged rows under theplatform H and seated on the floor of the pit ill to keep the platformin its elevated position and to yield when the platform is presseddownwardly by the weight of an automobile or the like, and to return theplatform to the elevated position after the weight has been releasedtherefrom.

Blocks 56 are placed on the floor of the pit to limit the downwardmovement of the platform, while the platform has at each corner adepending leg 51 having rollers 58 thereon rolling against the verticalends of the pit ill for the purpose of preventing the platform frombecoming misaligned, and to ensure free and positive movementof theplatform under all conditions of operation. If desired masks 59 offlexible or inflexible material may be provided to bridge the gaps atthe opposite ends of the platform between the ends of the platform andthe corresponding end walls of the pit l0 so that the automobile willnot be required to negotiate a bump in entering or leaving the garage,which might cause undesirable jarring of the platform.

A spring bar 60 whose shape is clearly shown in Figures 1 and 2 isfastened as indicated at 6| over the outside of the doors and has aninwardly directed central part 62 adapted to be engaged .by upstandingrods 63 mounted on the upper ends of the inner edges of the doors [2 andI3.

When the springs in the various hinges throw the doors to the closedpositions these rods 63 strike the bar 60 as the doors come to theclosed position, in such a way that the shock on the various hinges isrelieved by the contact of the rods 63 with the spring 60, so that thedoors can close quickly but quietly and without such jarring as wouldproduce undue wear on the parts. If desired a suitable locking mechanism64 may be cooperatively mounted on the doors for locking the same,although locking of the doors may be procured simply by cutting off thesupply of compressed air to the cylinders 29, 29' which is i;accomplished by closing .the valve 65 which is interposed in thecompressed air supply pipe 66 which enters one side of the control valve42 as shown. Any suitable source of compressed air or other fluid underpressure may be provided, such as a pressure tank, and this is the onlymotive force required for the operation of the doors.

With the platform in the elevated position shown in Figures 1 and 3 ofthe drawings, the rolling of an automobile upon the left hand end of theplatform ll will cause depression of the platform with consequentdepression of the piston 44 in the control valve 42 to a position inwhich the side of the piston will close off the opening 50 leading tothe piston supplying air pipes-39 and 39'. When the automobileprogresses farther toward the doors the platform II will be fartherdepressed so as to bring the piston 44 into its lowermost position inwhich the passage 53 therein will bring the compressed air supply pipe66 in communication with the pipe 40 which supplies the piston pressureconduits 39 and 39', whereby air under pressure will be entered in thecylinders 29 and 29' in front of the pistons 38 so as to drive thepistons toward the closed end of the cylinders, with the effect ofpulling the piston rods 28 and 28 outwardly so as to effect swinging ofthe doors in an upward direction from Figure 2 or in a left handdirection from the position of Figure 3 until the doorsoccupy the fullopen positions.

The platform is so proportioned in length that less of the platform islocated within the garage than outside, so that the automobile need nottravel an excessive distance within the garage in order to get off ofthe platform and permit the same to return to initial elevated position.When the automobile has entered the garage and has left the platform II, and the platform is returned toward the initial elevated position,the air above the piston 44 in the valve 42 will exhaust through theopening 41, the air compressed below the piston will exhaust through theopening 5|, and the spring hinges :forcing the doors toward the closedposition and pushing the pistons 38 backwardly in the cylinders 29 and29, will exhaust the cylinders 29 and 29' back through the conduits 39and 39', through the pipe 40 into the casing of the control valve belowthe piston.

44 and out through the opening 5|, so that little resistance is Offeredto the springs in their door closingaction. The described mechanism isthen ready to operate for opening the doors as soon as the automobilehas been backed onto the portion of the platform within the garage whenitis desired to take the automobile out of the garage. When in backingthe automobile out-of the garage the automobile leaves platform .I l,the same will return to initial position, thereby permitting the doorsto close after the automobile has left the garage.

Although I have shown and described herein a preferred embodiment of myinvention, it is to be definitely understood that I do not desire tolimit the application of the invention thereto, and any change orchanges may be made in the materials, and in the structure andarrangement of the parts, within the spirit of the invention and thescope of the subjoined claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a door construction of the class described comprising a pair ofdoors hingedly mounted on a support and each door including a pluralityof foldable sections, means for closing said doors and spring means'mounted over each .door and engageable by a portion of each door as thedoor is swung into closed position so as to take up shock preventingmeans secured above each door the shock of the closing of the door andprevent comprising a spring member including a pair of transmittal ofthe shock to the door closing means. arms diverging from the center ofthe doors 2. In a door construction of the class described outwardly andan upwardly extending pin on the 5 comprising a. pair of doors hingedlymounted on inner-most section of each door slidable against 5 a. supportand each door including a plurality of its respective arms. foldablesections, means for closing said doors, KENNETH JAMES O'HARA.

